With the country registering a high economic growth, Chaturvedi said further development could only be inclusive if civil servants took up the challenge of incorporating the best practices in providing clearances not only in the urban and rural areas but also for business.

By IANS, [RxPG] New Delhi, April 20 - In keeping with the government's move to make the administration easily accessible to people, Cabinet Secretary B.K. Chaturvedi Friday emphasised the need to implement e-governance programmes, especially in rural pockets.

Addressing a conference of the states' chief secretaries to take stock of the government's key social sector programmes and the internal security situation, Chaturvedi appreciated the excellent work in some states but pointed that more needed to be done to widen and deepen coverage.

Many of the issues discussed at the conference are expected to be raised at the Civil Services Day Saturday where Prime Minister Manmohan Singh will release a book on best practices, titled 'Learn from Them', compiled by the Department of Administrative Reforms and Public Grievances.

At a close-door session that carried on for four hours, Chaturvedi emphasised the necessity of stable tenures of civil servants at all levels, an issue close to the prime minister's heart, so as to ensure accountability.

In this connection, he spoke of the amendment in the All India Services Rules, which is currently pending notification from state governments.

'The public service delivery can be improved only if the corruption is minimised with transparency and simplification of the existing procedures and systems,' he said.

He also reminded the chief secretaries of the imperative need to improve police functioning that would go a long way in guaranteeing the rule of law so that every citizen could feel secure.

Highlighting that the fight against corruption was a critical component of improving governance, Chaturvedi stoutly maintained that a major overhaul of existing procedures and rules, coupled with use of technology could make a visible impact in this sphere.

Several of the government's key flagship social sector programmes such as the Bharat Nirman to arrest rural poverty and the Sarva Shiksha Abhiyaan aimed at providing universal elementary education, came up for review.

With the country registering a high economic growth, Chaturvedi said further development could only be inclusive if civil servants took up the challenge of incorporating the best practices in providing clearances not only in the urban and rural areas but also for business.

Several of the country's internal security challenges including the Maoist violence affecting huge swathes of the rural hinterland also came up for discussion.